I'm getting ready.

Your agent takes the pricing, the listing, the showings and the negotiation. Your jobs in this stretch are choosing them well, getting the house ready, and finding your papers before they ask for them.

• If you're comparing agents, ask each one the same questions and keep their answers side by side before you decide.
• Ask what the agreement's term is and what ends it.
• The paperwork and the getting-ready list are still yours, whoever is selling.

These jobs still need an owner when you sell without a listing agent. You can work through them in the order that fits your sale. Pricing affects many parts of a sale. Review the information carefully and get professional advice when you need it.

• Review recent nearby sales and the differences between those homes and yours. Keighbor organizes the information but doesn't recommend a list price.
• Plan the listing day backwards: photos, the description, the sign, where it will be posted.
• Line up a title company or closing attorney early; they answer questions the internet cannot.

Federal lead-paint rules are written for homes built before 1978. Sellers of those homes commonly give the buyer the EPA's lead pamphlet and a lead disclosure form before the contract is signed, and the buyer gets a window to have the home tested. The EPA's own page says what the rule covers.

• Look for the form in your state's paperwork list; most states use the federal one.
• If you know of lead paint, or have a report, it goes with the disclosure.
• The pamphlet is free from the EPA and a title company or agent usually has copies.

The federal lead rule is about older homes. For a newer one, your state's own disclosure form is the paper to read carefully: it asks its own questions about the house.

• Not sure of the year? It is on the county record, and on your closing papers from when you bought.
• Everything else on this page is the same.

An association adds a packet. Buyers commonly get the association's documents before closing: the rules, the budget, any assessments coming, and a statement of what you owe, often called a resale certificate or an estoppel letter. Ordering it takes time and sometimes a fee, so it goes on the list early.

• Ask the association what the packet costs and how long it takes.
• Some states cap the fee or set a deadline; your state's page says if yours does.
• Unpaid dues and fines show up at closing, so the statement is worth reading before the buyer does.

No association, no packet. The one thing to check is whether the home sits in a special district or carries a recorded covenant, which shows up on the title commitment rather than in an association.

• The county record, or your deed, says whether there are covenants.
• Everything else on this page is the same.